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Microplastics in Seabird Feces from Coastal Areas of Central Chile
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Researchers analyzed fecal samples from Dominican gulls, Magellanic penguins, and Humboldt penguins in coastal Chile for microplastic content, finding microplastics in all three species. The results document microplastic ingestion by multiple seabird species in Chilean coastal ecosystems, reflecting ocean contamination in the southeastern Pacific.
Pollution from plastic waste thrown into the ocean affects all levels of the food chain. Marine species of birds are affected by plastic particles of different sizes, especially the mesoplastics (1 to 10 mm) found in their digestive tract, which mainly cause obstructions. In the case of microplastics (1.000 µm to 1 mm), their presence in the digestive tract of these species has been widely reported. We studied fecal samples of the Dominican gull (Larus dominicanus) (n = 14), Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) (n = 8), and Humboldt penguin (Spheniscus humboldti) (n = 1) obtained from the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of the Biobío region, Chile. Microfibers of various colors were present in the feces of Dominican gulls and Magellanic penguins, corresponding mainly in composition to polypropylene (PP) (83%) and rayon (77%). These results demonstrate that microplastic particles occur in the coastal environments of central Chile and suggest that they are probably circulating in the food chain.
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Researchers used penguin fecal samples collected from three species across the Antarctic Peninsula over seven breeding seasons to assess microplastic ingestion in these seabirds. Finding microplastics in Antarctic penguin feces confirms that plastic pollution has reached even remote polar food webs, with krill serving as a potential pathway for transferring microplastics to penguins.
Microplastics and other anthropogenic particles in Antarctica: Using penguins as biological samplers
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Researchers analyzed stomach contents of three Antarctic penguin species for microplastics and other anthropogenic particles, finding MPs in all three species and suggesting that penguins could serve as biological samplers to track plastic pollution trends in remote polar waters.
Microplastic Pollution in Penguins from Antarctic Peninsula
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Researchers investigated microplastic pollution in penguins from the Antarctic Peninsula, examining the presence and characteristics of plastic particles in these seabirds as indicators of contamination in one of the most remote marine ecosystems on Earth.
First assessment of debris pollution in the gastrointestinal content of juvenile Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) stranded on the west south Atlantic coasts.
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This study found anthropogenic debris including plastics and fibers in 100% of juvenile Magellanic penguins stranded on the Argentine coast, with microparticles making up the vast majority. This is the first assessment of debris ingestion in juvenile Magellanic penguins and raises concerns about the impact of plastic pollution on these vulnerable young seabirds.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.